Improvement in



S. D. FIELD. ELECTROMAGNETIC REGULATOR FOR STEAM-ENGINES.- No, 174,127, I Pa tented Feb; 29,1876.

N. PETERS, PHOTO-LITHORAPNER. WAsHlNGTON D C PATE 'I' OFFICE.

STATES STEPH NXDQFIIJLD, OF SAN FRANCIsCO, CALIFORNIA.

.IMPROVEMEN T INTEL ECTRO-MAGNETI C REGULATORS FOR STEAM-ENGINES.

Specification; forming part of Letters Patent N 0. [721,127, dated February 29, 1876 application filed December 14,1875.

To all whomt't may 001106. a

Be it known that I, STEPHEN l). FIELD, of San Francisco city and county, State of California, have invented an Electro Magnetic.

Engineer'for Steam-Engines; andl do here by declare thefollowingdescription and accompanying drawings are sufficient to enable any'person skilled in the art or science to which it mostnearly appertains to make and use my said invention without further invention or experiment.

The object of myinvention is to connect the armature of an electromagnet with the valve which controls the ports of a steam or other evation of my device.

Let A represent an electro -magnet, with which the circuit-wire B is .connected, said circuit-wire leading to any desired distance from the magnet. The armature O I attach to one end of alever, D, which is pivoted at its middle in such a position that the end to which the armature is attached is directly opposite the magnet. The opposite end of this lever is drawn down'hy a spring, 0, against a pin, f, so as to keep the armatureat the proper distance from the magnet when no current is passing. The end of the lover I), opposite the armature, has a notch or catch, g, formed in it, with which the upper end of a latch-lever, H, engages when the device is set. This latch-lever H extends down below the valve to be operated, where it is pivoted, and this pivoted end has a trip-arm, t, extending out from it at right angles. A spring, j, serves to draw the upper end of the latch-lever H away from the notch when it is released from the catch g. i I is an ordinary steam-cylinder, inside of which steam or compressed air can be used, and J is the chamber, within which an ordinary slide-valve controls the ports which admit and exhaust the steam or air. The valve-rod K has a crosshead, l, secured to its outer extremity, and a coiled spring, 112,

serves to move the'valve in one direction. A horizontal lever or pawl, '12, is pivoted below the valve-rod,,so as to latch upon the crosshead 6 when it is at the farthest end of its tric current enters the magnet the armature will be drawn up close against the magnet, thereby releasing the upper end of the latchlever H. The spring j withdraws the upper end of the lever, causing its trip-arm'i to release the lever from the cross-head on the valve-rod. The springm then moves the valve so as to admit steam to the cylinder behind the piston and alternate sides of the valve. When this arrangementisintended to heused for operating a gong-hammer for striking a signal or alarm, I pivot the hammer-handle so as to provide a short lever-arm, p, for operating it. I then connect the end of this short arm with the cross-head g on the end of the piston-rod by means of a pitman, r, so that each stroke of the piston will give one stroke of the hammer S against thegong T. This signal may be operated by the gong at the surface, and furnish a return-signal to the signaling party, indicating that a blow has been struck at the surface.

In order to control the operation of the hammer, I connect the hammer-handle, between the hammer and the pivot, with the latch-lever H, by means of a connecting-bar, u, so that as the hammer recoils after each stroke it will force the latch-lever H into engagement with the notch or catch g, thus withdrawing the trip-arm t, and allowing the spring 0 to force the lever n upward, so as to, cause it to catch upon the cross-head Z and arrest the motion of the valve. By this combinamine where it can be operated by either steam.

or compressed air, and the circuit-wire can'be connected from the surface with a controllingniagnet, so as to strike an alarm or signal, display a flag, or perform some other duty..

The notch or catch 9 can be constructed so i as to release the latch-lever H upon either the up or down motion of the armature.

In the present instance I have represented a double latch, which requires both movements of the armature in order to release the latch-lever, the upper notch releasing it as the armature moves against the magnet, while the lower notch catches it and releases it on the reverse movement.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim. and desire to secure by Letters Patent. is-

1. In combination with a valve operated in one direction by a spring, m, and having the cross -head I secured to the valve rod, a tripping device or series of tripping-levers,

which are connected with and operated by the armature 'O, electro-magnet A, and circuitwire B, substantially as and for the purpose desribed.

2. The valve-rod K, having the cross-head l secured to its outer extremity," and having the spring m arranged to move it in one direction, in combination with the stop-lever or pawl 01, operated by a spring, 0, and an autom'atic tripping device, when said tripping device is operated by an electric current, substantially as and for the purpose described.

3. In combination with a steam-cylinder, I, having its piston-rod connected with the short arm 1; of a hammer-handle, and having the valve which controls its steam-ports operated in one direction by a'spring, 0, and arranged to be arrested at the end of its stroke by a pawl or lever, n, the connecting-bar u, which connects the long arm of the lever with the latch-lever H, so that the back or reverse movement of the hammer will automatically set the device and arrest the motion of the valve, substantially as and for the purpose described.

STEPHEN DUDLEY FIELD.

Witnesses: GEO. H. STRONG, JNo. L. BOONE. 

